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I'm offering a free taster session before my mindful self-compassion course starts in January. Great resource for eco-anxiety and mental health. Here is more info: www.sebastianablack.co.uk/mindful-self-compassion. 

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I'm offering a free taster session before my mindful self-compassion course starts in January. Great resource for eco-anxiety and mental health. Here is more info: www.sebastianablack.co.uk/mindful-self-compassion. 

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The EDP is paying attention

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Published: 6:00 AM November 19, 2021

Youth services and counsellors are dealing with more and more young people fighting climate anxiety, as uncertainty over the future and fears for the environment continue to take their toll.

A global survey of some 10,000 young people across 10 countries found that almost 60pc of 16-25-year-olds feel either very worried or extremely worried about the plight of the planet and climate change.

And climate anxiety is becoming just as prevalent in people younger than this age group, as our children grow more and more aware of the world around them.

A relatively new phenomenon, climate anxiety can take a variety of forms, but is largely centred around feeling either powerless over climate change or feelings of guilt that you personally are not doing enough to fight it.

Dan Mobbs, chief executive of youth charity MAP, said he has seen it become increasingly common among the children he supports, with the charity taking a two-pronged approach to addressing it.

He said: "What we have on our hands at the minute is a generation that is having to come to terms with the fact there are many things previous generations had just won't be in their future - things like cheap holidays, affordable homes and healthy job markets.

"There are so many things they feel powerless about and climate anxiety is another type of fear about the future, which we counsel lots of young people on."

The charity's approach to helping people coping with climate anxiety is largely based around counselling, but also includes work through its Youth Advisory Board to give youngsters a feeling of responsibility and control.

Mr Mobbs, who attended the COP26 summit in Glasgow, added: "I do believe young people understand more about climate change than ever before.

"The worst thing about any kind of anxiety is feeling that you do not have control, but something that really helps is the feeling that they are doing something about it and feeling part of a community.

"Giving young people a feeling that they are having a say and using their voices is so important."

The issue of climate anxiety itself was discussed at length at an event organised by the Norwich Eco Hub, held last week.

At the event, a number of speakers shared their experiences of the issue, how it can be treated and the issue it has.

Among them was a 14-year-old who started her own climate action group to quell her own climate anxiety.

She told the event that despite making her own positive lifestyle changes, it remained difficult to quell her own feelings of guilt and anxiety.

She added that she often feels "belittled" by people who do not treat the issue as a "real" form of anxiety".

Alina Sandu, of the Norwich Eco Hub, said: "Young people are the ones most affected by climate anxiety as they are the ones who will be most affected by climate change itself.

"At the event, we heard a lot of suggestions for how to respond to climate anxiety and one of the best ways is to get out in the community and meet like-minded people with the same concerns.

"Getting involved in things like litter picks or beach cleans, even small scale things like that, can help with feelings of helplessness or powerlessness, which is where climate anxiety comes from."

Jamie Osborn, who sits on Norwich City Council for the Green Party has actively campaigned around climate change for several years.

Mr Osborn, aged in his 20s, said: "Climate anxiety is an extremely serious issue, particularly among children. They are at school to learn all the tools they need for the future, but also learn they may not have much of a future because of the impact of climate change.

"The best way to tackle it though is to come together, protest and get involved in collective action, which is why groups like Extinction Rebellion and things like school strikes are so useful.

"You have to embrace that climate change is not a problem created by individuals, it is a collective issue that affects us all."

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How climate anxiety plagues our young people - and how to fight it

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Published: 6:00 AM November 19, 2021 Youth services and counsellors are dealing with more and more young people fighting climate anxiety, as uncertainty over the future and fears for the environment continue to take their toll.

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With the need for changes in the way we do things, comes the fear of losing jobs.  Rightly or wrongly, it's a reason why some would rather not comprehend change. It is good that trade unions recognise the need for change and back this.  Unite is an example of this and highlight that we need to do this whilst also informing employees of how this doesn't need to result in job loss.

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Science has shown that acts of kindness - such as helping someone in need, or giving to charity - improve our health, help build better relationships, and can even be contagious. Such acts promote the production of 'feel-good' chemicals like oxytocin, serotonin and dopamine in our brains, and possibly even give us a 'helper's high,' scientists say.

That's why the charity kindness.org is keen to promote kindness, and an understanding of the science behind it, in schools. The result will be happier students and more caring classrooms, they say - and society as a whole stands to benefit.

Its Learn Kind curriculum looks at the science of kindness, along with the development of skills such as self-awareness, empathy and emotional literacy. The pilot began in 2020, when it was taught in 15 countries, including the US, the UK and Thailand, reaching more than 38,500 students globally. Deemed a success, Learn Kind has now been adopted by 260 schools worldwide.

"Kindness impacts our physical, emotional and mental health," says Rebecca Reed, director of programmes at the charity. "An entire year of students experiencing a culture of kindness [could impact] communities, cities or countries."

Positive News spoke to some of the educators involved in the pilot to find out more.

Empathy via emojis

Then he asked students what they looked like when they felt confused. "They were able to say: 'My eyes tighten up and my teeth clench'," he recalls. "This was one of the best lessons," Evans enthuses, adding that the exercise enabled his students to recognise how their peers are feeling, even if initially they were a bit hesitant.

At the end of the programme, he encouraged his students to "catch each other being kind". When they witnessed an act of kindness, they jotted down a note, saying what they saw. Kind acts could be as simple as cleaning up the classroom, or helping someone to pick up something they had dropped. The names of the students who were "caught being kind" were then listed in the front foyer of the school, to amplify their action. "I believe all kids have kindness in their heart, and this lesson brought that to the surface," Evans says.

The curriculum has had a big impact on his students. "They're making more friends and keeping them," he reports. "They're more compassionate: they're not putting each other down, and they're better listeners."

She particularly enjoyed a lesson about empathy, that centred around role play. For example, one child was asked to play someone who had no one to sit with at lunch, and another was asked to think about what they might say to them.

Initially, there were eye-rolls and hesitancy, Martelli admits. But the scientific focus of the lessons - activating kids' natural curiosity by looking at kindness throughout history, for example - along with the activities, was able to draw in even the most sceptical of students.

To round off the programme, the children conducted their own scientific 'kindness experiments' - documenting how carrying out kind acts made them feel. For example, one student chose to make a Skype call to his grandma. Another decided to bake cookies with her sister. Perhaps unsurprisingly, both documented feeling good afterwards.

The students seemed to take the lessons to heart and referred back to them over the rest of the year, Martelli says. She thinks the programme has the potential to create a better world. "I've seen so much change in the world over the course of my 60+ years. Our society has progressed in many areas, but it would appear that the basic tenet of kindness has been pushed to the back of the shelf. We are overly concerned with academic advances and technological innovations. But kindness? It's vital for the future success of society."
Main image: Paolo Jay

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Meet the educators using science to teach kindness

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Science has shown that acts of kindness - such as helping someone in need, or giving to charity - improve our health, help build better relationships, and can even be contagious. Such acts promote the production of 'feel-good' chemicals like oxytocin, serotonin and dopamine in our brains, and possibly even give us a 'helper's high,' scientists say.

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Ruth Taylor and Norfolk and Waveney Mind

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Ruth Taylor and Norfolk and Waveney Mind

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Contact Ruth Taylor at  ruth.taylor@norfolkandwaveneymind.org.uk  and the Nature Connect project at  natureconnect@norfolkandwaveneymind.org.uk

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We’re Norfolk and Waveney Mind, the mental health charity that believes no one should have to face a mental health problem alone.

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Kit is 14, a climate activist and co-founder of Earthling Action. Kit took part in the seminar with a pre-recorded video.

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Sebastiana Black, one of the speakers at the Finding Hope event, is an ecotherapist and co-founder of Ecotherapy East Community Interest Company that offers nature connection workshops and retreats in East Anglia, as well as hands-on experience of managing a meadow they steward. With her partner Rob they have been regenerating a 12-acre meadow in Suffolk with the help of a community of volunteers, planting and tending trees and wildflowers and increasing biodiversity on the land. Sebastiana is also a Mindful Self-Compassion teacher and integrative counsellor working in private practice indoors and outdoors.

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A lack of time spent in nature can contribute to mental health problems, as well as ADHD and obesity. It can also give a rise to a feeling of disconnection and isolation.

Research shows that ecotherapy, and generally being outdoors more, has numerous benefits including:

For the first few sessions we will meet indoors in order to establish a safe therapeutic relationship, explore your goals and make sure you feel ready for our outdoor sessions. Together we will decide how often we will meet outdoors. Indoor sessions can serve as an opportunity to process the time spent outdoors as well as to focus on other goals you may have for your therapy.

Ecotherapy can also be part of indoor sessions. Working indoors involves connecting with natural items, pictures and plants, imagining and visualising different aspects of the natural world and bringing this imagery into our work and your creativity.

I will send you an introductory email before our first session outdoors, explaining where we will meet and other practicalities you might need to know.

I work in a couple of locations in Norfolk and Suffolk: a woodland in an urban part of Norwich and a private field in Suffolk. However, I am also open to exploring other natural locations with you. Please do contact me with any specific questions you might have about this and I would be happy to help.

The natural world offers us much guidance and nourishment if we are awake to it. In this introductory workshop you will discover some practical ways to connect with the natural world and yourself, using Ecotherapy and Mindfulness activities. As the seasons change, we can let go and welcome what is ahead of us.

On a spacious meadow near St Michael South Elmham, Suffolk

£45 Early Bird (before 1st October)

Full rate £60 - Concession £30

Using our popular and powerful combination of Ecotherapy and Mindfulness practices you will have an opportunity to deepen and develop your connection to yourself and the natural world. Settling your mind and opening up your senses will allow you to be guided by the natural world in autumn, receiving insights and discovering new ways of being. We will hold space to nourish what most needs attention in your life, whilst attuning to what the natural world may be asking of us.

We will be outdoors, sitting round the fire or if it is raining under a shelter. The day will include walking meditations, sit spots, awakening senses practices and other experiential ecotherapy and mindfulness exercises, as well as time for sharing in the group and digesting experiences through creativity (creative writing, image making).

The meadow we will be on has compost loos and running water. Parking is available and lift share will be organised if necessary. More information on booking.

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Ecotherapy| Suffolk| Norfolk| Norwich,UK| Sebastiana Black

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A lack of time spent in nature can contribute to mental health problems, as well as ADHD and obesity. It can also give a rise to a feeling of disconnection and isolation.

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Stuart Hellingsworth & Rethink Mental Illness

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Stuart Hellingsworth & Rethink Mental Illness

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Stuart Hellingsworth is a Psychology graduate, a Trustee of Rethink Mental Illness and a member of Great Yarmouth Green New Deal. He recognises how depressing and scary the environmental challenges we face are, but will talk about how we can change this to hope and action.

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We improve the lives of people severely affected by mental illness through our network of local groups and services, expert information and successful campaigning. Our goal is to make sure everyone severely affected by mental illness has a good quality of life.

Get advice and information

About mental illness

1 in 4 people will experience a mental illness in their lifetime. People can, and often do, recover with the right treatment and support. Our advice and information pages can help you learn more about conditions, symptoms and diagnoses, so you or a loved one can get the help you need.

Living with mental illness

Living with a mental illness should not be a barrier to a good quality of life. Our advice and information pages contain all you need to know about getting the proper treatment and support for you or a loved one and what you can do if you feel the help you are getting is not right.

Rights and restrictions

If you experience mental illness or care for someone who does, it is essential to know your rights. Our information pages has advice on mental health laws, rights and restrictions, social care, welfare, and resources about the police, courts & prison service.

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No matter how bad things are, we can help.

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1 in 4 people will be affected by a mental health problem in their lifetime - we are here to support them when they do.

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Mindful Self-Compassion course  with Sebastiana starting in January 2022

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COVID 19- Please be aware we will be following government guidelines on social distancing (maybe better called "safe relating"), keeping the event well below the government limit of 30 people, having washing facilities available, and asking you to bring your own food, teabags/coffee, paper and drawing utensils, etc.

A day of mindfulness outdoors in nature and with each other. We will be based in a beautiful garden next to a woodland, heath and marshes where we will venture to and connect with the land, beings, the elements and ourselves.

Mindfulness and self-compassion practices will support us to begin to bring all our senses, the body, mind and heart into the landscape and connect with what arises around and inside us. This is an opportunity to deeply participate in and become aware of the gifts that nature within and without offers us.

The day will include:

- sitting in nature in the group and on our own

- mindful movement and walking

- creative writing and drawing

- sharing in the circle

Please bring clothing to suit sitting outside (sunscreen, hat, warm layers and water proof clothing if it is wet, etc) and something to sit on you can carry easily, pen and notepad, water and a packed lunch. Tea, coffee and snacks will be provided.

No experience necessary, just willingness to sit quietly.

Small group limited to 12 people, so please book early.

Booking and info: robertblackcounselling@gmail.com

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Mindfulness as a part of Counselling (Mindfulness and Nature, please see below) Mindfulness is a fantastic tool which can help us get in touch with what is really going on inside us.

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Eco Friends & Local Wellbeing Tips in Norfolk & Suffolk Facebook Group

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Eco Friends & Local Wellbeing Tips in Norfolk & Suffolk Facebook Group

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Catherine Gray an Occupational Therapist, EMDR Therapist and the founder of Cup-O-T: Wellness and Therapy Services. Cup-O-T is a not-for-profit mental health organisation that aims to provide mental health therapy to young people in Norfolk at the earliest opportunity. Working from the Cup-O-T mobile therapy van Catherine and her team provide evidence based therapy and workshops in nature and the community. By nurturing our identity that we are part of nature, increasing our sense of connection and belonging in nature; we will establish values and skills that will mutually benefit our mental health, the environment and our communities.

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Cup-O-T: Wellness and Therapy Services is a not-for-profit mental health service. We provide mental health interventions and wellness sessions to young people and adults.

Donate to Cup-O-T: Wellness and Therapy Services
Donation amount

Our social purpose is:

To make mental health support accessible at an early stage.

To support young people to achieve their potential.

To make mental health support accessible in rural areas.

To increase mental wellness in communities.

Our therapy van story:

In November 2018 we purchased a Ford Transit van, over 7 months we transformed it into a calming therapy space. The Cup-O-T therapy van can be used for therapy appointments, as a base for groups or to run workshops from at events.

Our therapy woodland story:

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic we were unable to use the therapy van as a space for appointments due to social distancing. Instead we used it as a base and held appointments outdoors, in nature reserves, community spaces and woodlands. As social distancing lifted our young people and families requested that this continues. So the quest to find a woodland space began! In November 2021 we linked up with a woodland in Wymondham and in December 2021 we began a crowdfunder to secure the rent. We raised £6,000 and in January 2022 we began to transform the woodland space and run therapy sessions. there is still a way to go, shelters and facilities to add (STPP). but it is beautiful and tranquil and we hope you can visit one day.

We are proud members of:

My EMDR sessions have really helped to get my PTSD under control. Catherine has worked with me at my pace, never forcing me to go faster than I feel able to progress. She has worked with sensitivity and understands that my trauma is very real and the attacks I have faced are debilitating in the extreme (other therapists and other kinds of therapy have left me questioning myself a lot, EMDR hasn't). I haven't had to analyse my issues or dwell on the details I can't face. Instead I've been able to work through and reprocess my feelings which has led to me being able to easily cope during times which would previously have been triggers to an attack. EMDR is one of the best therapies I have encountered and Cup-O-T and Catherine have been simply amazing. Thank you so very much for changing my world.

A first class expertise service, which is dynamic, creative and fun.

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Cup-O-T: Wellness and Therapy Services is a not-for-profit mental health service. We provide mental health interventions and wellness sessions to young people and adults. Shop now Our social purpose is: To make mental health support accessible at an early stage. To support young people to achieve their potential.

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We blog about living with, managing, and supporting others with depression in a friendly, accessible way. Our resources explain key issues clearly – we don’t believe in complicating things unnecessarily. Plus everything we do comes with a heavy dollop of empathy.

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An emotional support animal (ESA) is any animal that provides comfort to a person with a disability through companionship. Most ESAs are commonly kept domestic animals such as dogs and cats, however, they can also be any species as long as they support a disability-related need.

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Norfolk Beach Clean is a community group where volunteers can join on beach clean events...